[Josef]

Hromnice

The day of Hromnice (pronounced HROM-nyi-tseh) is an important day for Czech weather-related folklore. It falls on February 2nd, the same day the popular Groundhog Day is celebrated in the United States. And no wonder - both are based on the same ancient Celtic tradition. The Czech word Hromnice is derived from sanctified "hromnice" candles that were lit on the night of February 2nd if there was a thunderstorm (thunder = hrom).

The weather on Hromnice is a sign of how long winter will linger. According to the tradition of Groundhog Day, the groundhog comes out of his hole after his winter sleep on February 2nd and if sees his shadow (i.e. if the day is sunny), he will go back to his hole and we should be ready for six more weeks of winter. If the day is cloudy, he will stay above ground, expecting the spring. There are dozens of Czech Hromnice sayings that predict the same, many of them reminding us that although we are starting to think about the spring, winter is by far not over and may not have even reached its peak.

Below are some Czech Hromnice sayings for you to enjoy (translated by My Czech Republic).

Predicting the length of winter
- Svítí-li slunce na Hromnice, bude zimy o šest neděl více.
- If the sun is shining on Hromnice, there will be six more weeks of winter.
- Hromnice-li jasné, čisté, potrvá déle zima jistě. Pakli sněží nebo hřímá, jaro
- jistě v blízku dlívá.
- If Hromnice is bright and clear, winter is sure to linger. If there is snow or
- thunder, spring must be near.
- Jihne-li na Hromnice, přilož do kamen; mrzne-li, po zimě amen.
- If the snow is melting on Hromnice, add more wood to the fire; if it's freezing,
- the winter is over.
- O Hromnicích déšť - na jaře sníh; o Hromnicích sníh - na jaře déšť.
- Rain on Hromnice - snow in the spring; snow on Hromnice - rain in the spring.
- Zelené Hromnice - bílé velikonoce.
- Green Hromnice - white Easter.

Animal "forecasters"
- Vyjde-li jezevec o Hromnicích z díry, za čtyři neděle zpátky zas pílí.
- If the badger comes out of his hole on Hromnice, he'll be rushing back four
- weeks later.
- Jest-li o Hromnicích teplo, staví medvěd boudu; pakli o Hromnicích zima, bourá
- medvěd boudu.
- If Hromnice is warm, the bear builds himself a shed. If Hromnice is cold, the
- bear tears down his shed.
- Na Hromnice husa po vodě - na velikonoce po ledě.
- If the goose swims on water on Hromnice, it will walk on ice at Easter.
- Jak dlouho skřivan před Hromnicemi zpívá, tak dlouho po nich bude mlčet.
- However long before Hromnice the skylark sings, that's how long it will be silent
- after Hromnice.

Marking the middle of winter
- Na Hromnice zimy polovice.
- Hromnice - the middle of winter.
- Na Hromnice půl krajíce a půl píce.
- Have half of your loaf and half of your fodder left on Hromnice.
- O Hromnicích anebo okolo Hromnic jistá zima bývá; odkuž mnozí chtějí, že jest
- toho času polovice zimy.
- On or around Hromnice it is certain to be cold; which makes many believe that
- this is the middle of winter.

The days are getting longer, nature is awakening
- Na Hromnice o hodinu více.
- On Hromnice, the day becomes an hour longer (than on winter solstice).
- Na Hromnice zima s jarem potkává se.
- On Hromnice, winter and spring meet.
- Na Hromnice musí skřivánek vrznout, i kdyby měl zmrznout.
- On Hromnice, the skylark must sing even if it were to freeze to death.

Predicting the year's crops
- Pošmourné Hromnice sedláku milé jsou velice.
- Cloudy Hromnice makes the farmer happy.
- Kdyby o Hromnicích napadlo jen tolik sněhu, co je na černé krávě znát, bude
- úrodný rok.
- If as little snow falls on Hromnice as can be noticed on a black cow, the year
- will be fertile.
- Na Hromnice kalužky, budou jabka i hrušky.
- If there are puddles of water on Hromnice, there will be apples and pears.
- Jestli na Hromnice mrzne a sněží, úrodný rok na to běží.
- If Hromnice is freezing and snowy, a fertile year will follow.
- Na Hromnice má sedlák raději vlka ve chlévě i ženu na marách než slunce.
- On Hromnice, a farmer would rather have a wolf in his barn or a wife dead
- than the sun in the sky.

Bron: http://www.myczechrepublic.com/czech.../hromnice.html

[pepo]

Josef_e, dank je voor deze bijdrage. Gisteren had ik een stevige discussie met iemand, die alles wist van Hromnice en ik helemaal niets, het ging ook over kaarsen op zolder en heleboel geheimzinnige dingen. Toch zit er misschien wel wat in. Ik hoorde (gisteren ochtend) opgewekte koolmezen en tevreden merels. Vandaag niet. Ja, hrom = donder.
Wie weet meer? In NL geen DONDER_dag?